Andrei Kirilenko: No timetable for return

Andrei Kirilenko tells Tim Bontemps he feels OK now physically but his return will take some time, some activity on the court for him to be ready. That lack of a real timetable, he says, has made him feel "terrible" about missing so much time to recurring back spasms.

Because he's missed so much time --nearly a month-- he said he'll need 3-to-5 days of activity before he can take the court for the Nets. Kirilenko has already missed as many games this season (14) as he missed all of last season. And based on what happened the first time he tried returning, nothing is guaranteed.

Kirilenko told Bontemps he was preparing to play against the Pistons on November 24. But after starting a brief workout prior to that game, he realized he couldn’t go.

"I felt fine at first," he said. "But after five or six minutes, I jumped up and my back locked up."

"It’s just rehabbing his back," Jason Kidd said Tuesday morning. "Again, we’re trying to bring guys back when they are 100 percent, not when they feel good or they’re in and out. That happened with [Kirilenko] once before, so we’re going to make sure he’s 100 percent."

Meanwhile, Kevin Garnett raised the possibility that Paul Pierce broke his hand earlier than believed and his shooting woes could be attributed to that.  By this weekend, Kirilenko, Deron Williams, Paul Pierce, Brook Lopez and Jason Terry will all have missed as many games to injury this season as they did all of last season.

• Kirilenko feels ‘awful’ about not being able to play - Tim Bontemps - New York Post
• Brooklyn Nets have no timetable for Andrei Kirilenko - Mike Mazzeo - ESPN New York
• When did Paul Pierce break his hand? - Mike Mazzeo - ESPN New York